Never Again
by Supa Artemis and Supa Cheyenne
Summary: AU. Yami has been gone for one and a half years and Yugi is struggling to keep himself together. One night, during a snowstorm, a mysterious visitor shows up and Yugi learns that never again doesn't always mean forever. YYxY Yaoi by Cheyenne.


Cheyenne: Hello, everyone! And welcome to my very first one-shot!

Khemet: You can bet there's a story behind this one…

Cheyenne: Yep. Actually, this started while I was IMing a good friend of mine, and we were talking about the ending of Yu-Gi-Oh! because my ranting on about how awesome it was must have inspired her to watch it (Huzzah! I have converted someone!... Sorry, Brooke, xD).

Khemet: Or it could have been the fact that she got interested after you made her watch the Millennium World/Dawn of the Duel episodes…?

Cheyenne: … That too. Either way, we were talking about how sad the ending was (and I was warning her not to watch Yu-Gi-Oh! GX because it's fail and it pisses me off), and I was really upset again over how Yami left, when the idea for this little ficlet hit me. I wanted a happy ending for Yu-Gi-Oh! So, I decided to take matters into my own hands and write one!

Khemet: And so there you have it. I'm bored, Cheyenne, can I go yet?

Cheyenne: …No. Anyways, the beginning's a little angsty (for obvious reasons), so yeah… but the whole story isn't that depressing xD

Yami: It better not be, for your sake!

Cheyenne: *Nervous swallow*

Khemet: *Snickering*

Cheyenne: Always, shall we proceed with the disclaimer?

Yugi: Cheyenne does not own Yu-Gi-Oh! If she did, you can bet it would have had a happy ending involving Yami and Yugi and lots of fluffiness and yaoi… WHY DON'T YOU OWN YU-GI-OH!, WOMAN?

**Warning:**** This story contains yaoi (boyxboy), more specifically a puzzleshipping (YamixYugi) pairing, and some beginning angst. No Anzu bashing in this fic, guys. Sorry.**

**Dedications:**** This fic goes out to Brooke and Natoya, for their constant support. (In Brooke's case, more so because she would listen to me rant on and on about Yu-Gi-Oh! and Yami and Yugi for hours on end without complaint, and she would watch the episodes and offer her opinions and if I wasn't talking to her in the first place this fic wouldn't even exist.) (In Natoya's case, because she is super uber awesome and always there for me, among many other things that would probably take up the whole story if I tried listing them all. Seriously.)**

**Note:**** This fic was also partially inspired by the song: "Never Again", by Kelly Clarkson, though it is not a song-fic.**

He was gone.

Yugi couldn't shake those words; those horrid words that sent his soul into the blackness of despair.

He was gone.

Yami. Atemu. His other self. His secret koi.

Gone.

He didn't want to do it; he didn't want to win the game.

"We will never be apart, for the courage I have given you will stay with you. I will _always_ be with you." ((AN: I couldn't remember exactly what he said… I apologize!! I saw the ending once, read it in the manga, cried publicly in Chapters, and vowed I'd never read it again. Umm…Well, I'm obviously going to break that eventually, but it's too sad! And I don't have the manga for that one and I don't want to watch the episode because I'll become EMOTIONALLY TRAUMATIZED and be sad for days ;-; *Wails*))

His yami's words rang in his mind, but it didn't change a thing.

He was still gone.

Never again would he see his yami. His friend. Mou hitori no boku. His other self. And it hurt; this knowledge hurt more than he'd let anyone believe. Never again would he hear the soft, baritone voice. Never again would Yugi hear Yami's rich laughter. He had to except it. Yami was gone, and he wasn't coming back. He almost didn't do it. He almost didn't finish the duel, he almost didn't win.

He almost didn't let his yami go.

But he knew he had to. Yami deserved the afterlife. Heck, anyone who saved the world as continuous as Yami had deserved the best freaking afterlife there was! But that didn't stop the pain. He couldn't stop thinking about it. Sure, at school he pretended to be fine. He kept up his high grade average; he hung out with his friends… His friends… Would Ryou understand? No… Ryou's yami had been psychotic and evil and it didn't seem like Ryou missed him all that much. Malik wouldn't understand, his yami had been just plain insane. Yugi growled in frustration. Why? It had been over a year. Why couldn't he be strong? Why couldn't he be strong, even for Yami? He knew his dark was happy now; happy to be in the afterlife with all his friends. Mana, Mahado, Seth, Isis… and Yami would have been happy to see his father, especially after 3000 years of imprisonment inside the Millennium Puzzle.

But it didn't change the fact that he was gone.

'_I will have to get used to it,_' Yugi told himself. '_I must not think about myself. I must not think such selfish thoughts…_' But he could not. More than anything, he wished he had told his darker half how he had felt. Would Yami have stayed, then?

"Hey, Yuge! Man, you alright? You looked kind of spaced for a moment there!" Yugi snapped out of his reverie to see his friend, Jou, staring at him.

"Yeah, I'm fine!" Yugi said with forced brightness, making himself smile briefly. That was what he always said when they unwittingly caught him thinking about Yami. "Yes, I'm alright. Don't worry!" It had become such a habit now that he didn't give it a second thought. Lie, say you're fine, smile convincingly, and hope they didn't notice how the smile never reached your eyes.

"Are you sure, Yugi? You look really…" Yugi looked up to stare at his friend, Anzu.

"I'm fine, really!" He insisted, smiling again for good measure. Or at least trying. At that moment, the façade he had been masquerading under for the past year-and-a-half broke, and Yugi had to stare intently at the plate of food in front of him to keep the salty liquid that was threatening to spill down his face at bay.

"Yugi…" Anzu's voice was soft, and Yugi looked up at her with wet amethyst eyes. His friends own blue eyes were also sad; and Yugi realized that she, too, had loved Yami. Actually, Yugi had always known Anzu had had a thing for his other half, but he had never really known how deep it was. He knew that Anzu had loved Yami, yes; but he also knew that her love for his other half didn't run as deep as Yugi's own did.

She hadn't spent years bound with him; hearing his thoughts, sharing a body with him… at first, it had been weird. You can't look anyone in the eye and tell them that it wasn't weird sharing your body with the 3000-year-old-spirit of a former Egyptian Pharaoh. At first they were friends. Best of friends, at that. But then Yugi started feeling something else. Every time he'd see his darker half, he wouldn't be able to stop a faint blush from gracing his cheeks. Whenever he watched Yami duel, a strange warmth would spread throughout his body. Just hearing that soft, yet commanding voice he felt as if he could melt. Yugi had originally thought these thoughts were a result of their link to each other, but he soon realized it ran deeper than that. He loved his other half. His Yami.

His Yami…

And now he was gone.

Yugi felt the tears spill over, and he felt angry at his own weakness. No! Go away! He wanted to tell the tears, even knowing they wouldn't listen. Jou, Anzu, Seto (yes, Mr. Ice King himself), Honda, Ryou, and Malik were all staring at him with concern.

"I-I'm fine!" Yugi stuttered, but his voice shook and broke, and the tears continued to cascade down his face. No! He wouldn't break down in front of his friends… he couldn't… he needed them to know he could be strong. Strong like Yami. Yami… the thought of his other half brought more tears to his eyes.

Never again, never again, never again…

Never again would he hear Yami's soft voice; hear Yami call him "aibou" one last time.

"Hey, Yuge!" Jou sounded confused, just upset so see his best friend so upset. "Talk ta us, man! We can help you…" Except Yugi knew they could not.

"Yugi?" Anzu's soft voice broke through the young man's train of thoughts again. "Were you thinking about… him?" The only response was a quick nod from Yugi. "And how long… how long have you thought about it?"

"A long time," Yugi whispered, and he saw Anzu close her eyes.

"I'm sorry," his friend said, and at that moment, Yugi knew she was telling the truth. He nodded mutely, accepting what little comfort Anzu could offer, before abruptly standing up. All his friends were staring at him, but the only ones who seemed to understand what was going through Yugi's head were Ryou and Anzu. Yugi was about to open his mouth and try to explain what was wrong without giving too much away, but it was then that an announcement came over the mall's PA system. Yugi sighed, trying to cover the embarrassed flush that had spread across his face.

"_Attention, Shoppers!"_ The PA-lady said. _"Due to the impending storm, we advise all mall occupants to head home as soon as possible!"_

"What snowstorm?" Jou asked frowning, temporarily forgetting about the Yugi-situation.

"_Again, we will be closing due to the storm! Have a nice day!" _

"I swear that lady's a robot," Malik muttered, shooting a glare at the speakers where they all sat in the food court. Seto looked at Jou, who frowned and look at Honda who was staring at Anzu who was staring at Yugi. Ryou and Malik were just shifting in their seats. Malik still hadn't guessed the real reason for Yugi's behavior, but he was close to it.

"You heard the announcement," Yugi said, starting to shake a little. The tears had left stains on his cheeks, and his eyes were still watery. He needed to calm himself down; Yami wouldn't want him to be…

No! He couldn't think of Yami right now. _'Deep breath, Yugi,'_ the young man thought to himself.

"Come on, guys, it sounds nasty out there!" Ryou broke the awkward silence. Or at least, as silent as it could get over a food court of slightly panicked people.

"Why the hell is everyone so worked up? It's just a little storm," Malik whined.

"Shut up, Malik," Seto snapped. Malik pouted in the direction of the CEO, and crossed his arms with a huff.

"Come on, you guys!" Jou said, standing up and swinging his backpack full of… whatever, over his shoulder. "We should go before this "storm" gets worse."

"Good luck walking in it," Seto remarked.

"Aww, come on, moneybags!" Jou pleaded, staring at the rich youth.

"I'll walk, the game shop is nearby," Yugi said quietly, but his friends had warped into an argument about transportation, and in Malik's case protesting the severity of the storm. Yugi sighed, and started walking towards the mall entrance. He pulled his coat over his small frame, and paced out of the automatic doors into the blinding whiteness of snow.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Yugi closed the door on the whirling storm behind him, listening to the bell tingle as the door hit it in its passing. Yugi sighed again. His grandpa had been called away to an excavation site… in Egypt. Again. So, as a result, the young duelist was all alone this particular night. Yugi smiled faintly, as an old memory came to pass.

**Flashback**

"_Yami! Yami, cut it out! What will grandpa say when he comes down to see me laughing like a lunatic when there's supposedly no one else in the house?"_

"_Ah, but your grandpa left for Egypt today remember, aibou?" A low chuckle was emitted, and Yugi turned to mock-glare at the spirit that hovered over his shoulder._

"…_Right," Yugi giggled as Yami poked his sides again. Now, you'd think that since Yami was a spirit, he'd go right through things, right? Well, wrong. As their bond strengthened, so did Yami's abilities to interact with solid objects. Yugi didn't know how it worked; nor did Yami. But they didn't complain, as it amused them both. Of course, Yami couldn't pick up most objects yet, but he could sit on things, and lean against them. He could also touch Yugi. The spirit seemed to enjoy poking and tickling his hikari, as Yugi had found out._

"_What are you doing?" The ancient spirit asked, pointing to the white stuff Yugi was pouring into a bowl._

"_Baking cookies," Yugi replied cheerfully. Yami turned to stare at him for a moment, a small smirk gracing his features._

"_Cookies, aibou?" He asked. Yugi blushed, nodding. He turned back to the counter where he was measuring ingredients, trying to prevent the blush from spreading any further._

"…_Yugi?"_

"_Hn?" Yugi replied, mixing the flour with some eggs and vanilla._

"_What are cookies?" Yugi burst out laughing as a confused Yami tilted his head to the side._

"_Umm, well… they're really, umm… yummy," Yugi supplied lamely. Yami looked even more confused. "They just taste really good. You'll have to wait until they're finished, though." Yugi finished mixing everything together. He proceeded to pull out two long, shallow pans and spray them with cooking oil. Yugi then opened a drawer, grabbing a star-shaped cookie cutter. He pulled out a cutting board, and grabbed a chunk of cookie dough with his hands. He then spread the dough over the cutting board, and pressed the cookie-cutter into it. When he removed the surrounding dough, there was a star-shaped lump. He continued to do this until all the dough was used up, and twenty four star-shaped cookies lay spread in two rows of six upon each pan._

"_Aibou, what are you doing?" Yami asked inquisitively as Yugi pulled on some oven mitts and slid the pans into the oven. He pressed a few buttons, and suddenly some numbers popped up on the oven, counting down._

"_Aibou?" Yami asked again. Yugi flashed a grin._

"_Putting the cookies in the oven!"_

"_The oven? That doesn't look like an oven," Yami said._

"_It's a new kind of oven, Yami," Yugi laughed._

"_Why is everything so complicated in this time period?" Yami's brow furrowed and he sighed._

"_It's not complicated, Yami! You're just too slow to grasp it," Yugi laughed. Yami arched his brow and a wicked grin slid across his sharp features._

"_You asked for it, aibou!" Yami lunged towards Yugi, who squealed and leapt out of the way. He proceeded to run out of the kitchen and into the living room. Yami followed closely behind, chasing his young hikari around the furniture until he finally had to literally leap across the couch to bring his lighter half to the ground._

"_Gotcha," Yami purred next to Yugi's ear, straddling the younger's waist to keep him in place. Yugi blushed fiercely, trying to wriggle out from under his dark half. Yami growled lowly, before smirking again. They sat there for Ra knows how long, having spent a lot longer on the chase than they thought they had, when Yugi suddenly heard something ringing._

"_Yami! Yami, the cookies!" Yugi protested. Yami just smirked._

"_Yami!" Yugi squealed feebly. His face was now bright enough to rival Yami's eyes._

"_What do you say, aibou?"_

"_Please?" Yugi asked. For good measures, he put on The Eyes. You know, the puppy eyes that could make even Seto Kaiba do whatever Yugi wanted him to… usually. He knew Yami couldn't resist them._

_At all._

"_Fine," Yami groaned, sliding off Yugi and standing up._

"_Domo arigato!" Yugi said, scrambling up and running into the kitchen to retrieve the cookies. But before he could, Yugi tripped over a carelessly discarded item. He let out a squeal as he plunged face-first towards the tile, preparing to say hello to the floor the hard way, when suddenly a pair of arms wrapped around his waist, halting his descent. "Y-Yami?" Yugi stammered._

"_Hai, Yugi?" Came the baritone of his mou hitori no boku. _((An: I don't care if that's grammatically incorrect xD))

"_Umm…" Yugi stammered as Yami drew him up so he wasn't hanging dangerously close to the ground. He didn't even bother to wonder how Yami could hold him so steadily in the first place. All Yugi was thinking about was how… well, he didn't know. This feeling; it was strange. It was as if Yami's arms had been made to hold Yugi. The younger stayed there for a moment longer than he needed to, before regretfully drawing away. What had just happened? Could he have just… could he like… no, no… he liked Anzu, didn't he? Yugi frowned. At the thought of Anzu, the strange feeling he used to get whenever he thought of her didn't rush up. What…? Then he thought of Yami and the warm feeling hurried back, ten times stronger than it had ever been for Anzu. What the-?_

"_Yugi?" Yami's inquiry broke Yugi out of his reverie. "The cookies?"_

"_Oh, shit!" Yugi cried, rushing towards the oven._

"_Yugi!" Yami grabbed the youths arm roughly in one hand, and with his other he held up the oven mitts. Yugi blushed, accepting the mitts and shoving them on his hands before opening the oven and pulling the cookies out. They were browner than they should be, but not quite burnt._

_Thank Ra._

"_Yami?" Yugi turned to see the spirit hovering and staring at the cookies._

"_So those are cookies?" Yami asked slowly._

_Yugi laughed. "Yes, Yami. Those are cookies."_

**End Flashback**

Yugi smiled sadly to himself, and again the full impact of his loss hit him full in the stomach. Sighing, he took off his coat and hung it up on the rack in the hallway and trudged upstairs. Once there, he turned on his computer, and logged in to see if anyone was on his IM.

He wasn't surprised when he saw Jou's name pop up under the "available" section.

_**YamisHikari67**_

_Hey, Jou!_

_**DuelMaster225**_

_Hey yuge!_

_**YamisHikari67**_

_You made it home okay, I take it?_

_**DuelMaster225**_

_Yup you?_

_**YamisHikari67**_

_Yeah…_

_**DuelMaster225**_

_Hey yuge. What was up wit you today? Ya know, in da food court_

_**YamisHikari67**_

_Oh… it was nothing._

_**DuelMaster225**_

_Nothing? You sure, yuge? You seemed prety upset_

_**YamisHikari67**_

_I'm fine! And it's spelt "pretty," Jou. And don't forget your periods!_

_**DuelMaster225**_

_Dis ain't a school essay yuge_

_**YamisHikari67**_

_So? It doesn't mean I'm letting you slack off on your grammar!_

_**DuelMaster225**_

_You're like our old teacher Yugi._

_**YamisHikari67**_

_Commas!_

_**DuelMaster225**_

_Wat?_

_**YamisHikari67**_

…_Nevermind._

_CrazyEgyptian990 and HikariHime _(1) _have signed in._

_**DuelMaster225**_

_Hey Yuge Malik and Anzu signed in._

_**YamisHikari67**_

_I know. But listen, Jou, I gotta go, sorry._

_**DuelMaster225**_

_Okay… you sure you okay, Yuge?_

_**YamisHikari67**_

_I'm fine. Bye!_

_YamisHikari67 has signed off._

Yugi stared at his computer screen with another sigh. Actually, he knew that Anzu and Malik would have jumped on him with a billion questions about his behavior, so he had decided to log off before they could literally spam and bombard him with questions he wasn't ready to answer. Unfortunately, he knew he'd have to face them eventually… Yugi shut down his computer and slid back in his chair. He then stood up and wandered aimlessly towards his dresser. Pulling out a pair of silk pajamas, he quickly pulled off his shirt and slid the smooth material over his skin. He finished changing then, walking over to his bed and lying down. It was late; around 11:50 PM… or so his alarm clock said. If Yami were here, he'd be lecturing Yugi on the virtue of sleep, even though neither of the two actually listened to each other on that matter.

Never again… never again… never again… Yami…

Yami… No! _'There I go again,_' Yugi thought sadly. His defenses lowered, all his grief for Yami's absence overwhelmed the King of Games, and he collapsed onto his pillow in a river of tears. Eventually he cried himself dry, and drifted into a troubled sleep.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

_Yugi awoke to find himself… well; he didn't exactly know where he was. Shadowy wisps of gray cloud-looking stuff swirled all around him, and above him he could see the black night and stars, which twinkled brightly. It looked… almost peaceful. Save for the fact that he couldn't see anything in front of him of course._

_But it was really quiet. Yugi could hear his own breathing and his footsteps as he moved through the hazy gray mist._

"_Yugi…" A voice whispered on the wind, and Yugi whirled around to face… more gray mist._

"_Hello?" Yugi called. "Is someone there?" He tried using his hands to push the gray clouds away, but they just reinserted themselves firmly in place._

"_Yugi…!" The voice sounded strangely urgent, and Yugi found himself running desperately through grayness to find it._

"_Who are you? Where are you? Where am I?" Yugi called as the mist swirled around him, clouding over his head and blocking his view of the sky._

"_Yugi!" The voice was closer and getting clearer._

"_Who are you?" Yugi wailed. The peaceful aura of the dream was gone. Now, his senses were replaced by terror. This terror made him run even further, plunging and stumbling through wisps and clumps of the gray clouds._

_A growl sounded from behind him. Something was there! Yugi could feel hot breath on his neck and he struggled to get further ahead of it. No! It was gaining on him!_

"_Yami!" Yugi cried in sheer absolute terror, trying to reach out to his darker half with everything he had._

"_YUGI!" There was a blinding flash of light, and Yugi felt himself stumble and drop forward. But instead of landing on the ground, he fell into a pair of familiar arms._

"_Yami?" Yugi whispered, tears coursing down his face. "Yami? Oh Ra, Yami, is it you? Please let it be you! Please, Yami!" Yugi cried, burying his face into his darker half's chest and crying his eyes out as said yami stroked his hair and made comforting noises._

"_Shh… shh, Yugi…" Yami murmured, wrapping his free arm around Yugi's waist and drawing him close. "Yugi, Yugi, Yugi…"_

"_Gods, Yami, I was so scared!" Yugi cried again, his tears subsiding somewhat._

"_Yugi… Yugi, I need you to do something for me." Yami said, his voice sounding urgent._

"_Yes, Yami?" Yugi looked up._

"_Let me in, Yugi… Let me in," Yami whispered._

"_W-What? Yami, I don't understand!"_

"_Let me in, Yugi! Let me in!" Yami sounded more pressing now._

"_Yami, stop! You're scaring me!"_

"_Yugi, you need to let me in!" Yami cried again, his voice rising as if he was struggling to make himself heard. "Let me in, Yugi! Open up! Let me in!"_

"Yami!" Yugi called, bolting upright in his bed. He couldn't get the pounding out of his head.

"Let me in! Yugi, open the door! Let me in!" Yami's voice still called in his head.

"Yugi!"

"Yami?" Yugi whispered, shaking his cranium to clear the voice. He couldn't afford to think of Yami again. He feared his heart would break if he did. It was a dream, a very bad dream. Yami was there, so he knew it wasn't real.

But oh, how he wished it was…

Outside, the wind continued to swirl and shriek. Yugi glanced over at his alarm clock and saw that it read 4:30 AM.

4:30 AM? Yugi sighed. He should get back to sleep.

Or he would've, if his head hadn't started banging and Yami's voice started yelling urgently again.

"Yugi!" It was faint, but he could hear it.

"Yami, wha-?" Yugi whispered again, sliding out of his bed. It was as if some unknown force was pulling him towards the door; or better yet, a dream.

Yes, that's it, Yugi was still dreaming. Once he got to the door, he would throw it open and Yami would be there.

And that's just what happened.

At first, Yugi was only aware of the bitter cold as the snow swirled around his bare feet, chilling the silk and pressing it against his skin. But he didn't even notice that when he caught sight of the figure in the doorway.

The man had spiky hair much like Yugi's own, only with blonde lightning streaks running up into the black parts of his locks. The man's bangs were also more jagged-looking than Yugi's were, framing his tanned face. And where Yugi's eyes were a bright amethyst, this mans eyes were a searing crimson.

"Y-Yami?" Yugi stuttered. Yes, this was definitely a dream.

"Yugi!" The man replied breathlessly. It was then Yugi noticed him trembling and shivering. Without word, he reached out and grabbed the sleeve of Yami's jacket, pulling him into the heated house and slamming the door on the arctic-like winds. Yugi proceeded to guide Yami to the fireplace, before the young hikari built a roaring fire. Soon, the two duelists were sitting together on the couch, everything silent except for the crackling of the flames and the breathing of the two men themselves.

"Yami?"

"Hn, aibou?"

"Why did you come back?" Yugi flinched at the way the question came out, making him sound as if he didn't want Yami there. Yami turned his head, and crimson met amethyst for a moment before the elder looked away.

"It's… complicated," Yami said, trying to avoid giving a direct answer.

"Please, Yami? At least tell me how you came back." Yugi asked, shifting so that he was on his side and staring at his dark. Yami had leaned forward so that his head was resting on his hands which were rested on his thighs, right by his knees.

"I wasn't happy," Yami finally sighed, drawing himself up so that his back rested against the couch.

"Wasn't…happy?" Yugi repeated, somewhat stunned. "But Yami! You were in paradise! Your friends, your family… they were all there! Why did you give that up?"

"Yugi, what you said was true. My friends were there, my family was there… but there was one person that wasn't there, and that person is the reason the gods took pity on me and sent me back here."

"Who?" Yugi asked, his senses too overwhelmed with the fact that his other self was even back at all. He turned his head away from his dark for a moment, trying to sort out his thoughts. On one hand, the man he had loved for years was sitting right next to him, at a time when Yugi had thought he'd never see him again. On the other hand…

"You."

Yugi sucked in his breath as Yami's response penetrated his thoughts. Had his yami just…? Had he just said…?

"What?" Was Yugi's breathless and totally witty response. Yugi turned to face Yami again, only to find out that they were closer than Yugi had originally thought.

"I wasn't whole without you, Yugi. Youcomplete me. You are my light, my friend, and I…" Yami turned away again, and Yugi found himself missing the hot exhale of his darker half's breath upon his face.

"Yami?" Yugi asked quietly, and Yami turned. Yugi sucked in his breath again as he met the distressed crimson eyes of his secret koi. It looked like Yami was waging some kind if internal war with himself…

Yugi didn't have time to brood about that, because the next thing he knew was the feeling of hot lips pressed against his. His eyes widened as both men's breathing became labored and faster, and Yugi moaned into the kiss. Yami tasted exactly as he had imagined; all exotic and spicy. Yugi didn't know what precisely was racing through Yami's mind, as their mind link had been severed a long time ago, but he could tell from the way Yami was growling that his other half was enjoying this just as much as Yugi was. In fact, Yami seemed to hunger for it. The kiss deepened, and Yugi suddenly found himself below Yami, with his dark half above him on the couch. They had broken the kiss because of the cursed need for oxygen, and were now panting and trying to catch their breath again.

"Yami?" Yugi asked softly, reaching his hand up to caress his yami's cheek. Yami closed his eyes and exhaled deeply, nuzzling his face into Yugi's palm.

"Yes, aibou?" Yami murmured deeply, the rise and fall of his chest returning to a steady pace.

"H-How long?" Yugi let his hand fall back to the couch. He felt exhausted, but that was to be expected. He had woken up in the wee hours of the morning to find the person he loved most in the world (who he had thought was gone forever), and had just found out said secret koi returned his feelings.

"Hn? I don't follow." Yami opened his crimson eyes, peering at his hikari closely.

"How long have you…" Yugi trailed off as a knowing light crept into Yami's orbs.

"A long time, Yugi," Yami whispered. "A long time. I couldn't live in the afterlife. Paradise. Because a paradise without you, Yugi, is no paradise at all. Yugi, I love you."

For years Yugi had been waiting to hear these words, but now that he had, he found that he had no ready response to them. Instead, he reached his hand behind his Yami's neck, and pulled his dark into another kiss, searing with passion. Yami moaned, sounding surprised and elated at the same time. It was Yugi's turn to growl as he felt Yami's tongue run along his bottom lip, begging for entrance, which Yugi readily granted. He moaned again as Yami's tongue dove in, exploring the moist cavern and mapping it out. Yugi playfully pushed his tongue against Yami, and a battle for dominance began. Yugi was able to win this duel, his own tongue diving into Yami's mouth. The taste of cinnamon and other spices that was his yami was even stronger now, and Yugi got to enjoy it for another ten seconds before Yami again reinserted his authority by dominating the kiss once again.

Finally, the again need for oxygen drove them apart once more, and Yami finally got off Yugi, allowing him to sit up straight.

"Yami?" Yugi asked.

"Hai, Yugi?" The two were now snuggled next to each other comfortably, Yugi pretty much in Yami's lap. Yami's head rested on his little hikari's head, as he marveled at the softness of his hair. Yugi was in a complete state of bliss.

"Never leave me, Yami. Please." Yugi said quietly.

"Never, Yugi. Never again."

"Promise?"

"Promise." Yugi sighed and leaned into Yami's chest at that answer. Never again would Yami leave him. Never again would he wake up to only bleakness and emptiness. Never again would he have to exist without the blessing of his yami… his koi… his other half. And Yami really was his other half. The being in the world that was there for Yugi and Yugi alone. They were made for each other, and no one else. Light and Dark. Hikari and Yami. Two halves of the same soul. The keepers of each others hearts.

"Yami?" Yugi asked again.

"Yes, aibou?"

"Aishiteru."

Yami purred into Yugi's hair, entwining his fingers with his light's. "Aishiteru (2), Yugi. Matsudai (3)."

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Cheyenne: Owari (4)! Wee! So, you already know the story behind this fic, as I explained above =) I hope you guys liked it! I've been plagued about writing this ficlet for awhile. I was very dissatisfied (and angry and upset and emotional and somewhat emo and depressed about his kind of stuff and do you like how I'm being lazy and just putting this into one big run-on sentence?) with the original ending to the point of public crying. What? I'm very emotional, as I'm sure I've stated =P

Khemet: Hn. I wouldn't have guessed.

Cheyenne: Well, ANYWAYS *Glares at Khemet* Please R&R. It's my first ever puzzleshipping attempt thing where I actually got to writing some YamixYugi fluff and whatnot, so I want to know how I did. Seriously. I need to know so I'm prepared for future attempts and stuff (especially for _**Defiance**_). =O Reviews are highly appreciated/valued!

Yami: *Nuzzles Yugi and murmurs something lowly*

Yugi: *Blushes*

Cheyenne: Aww! Kawaii! *Fangirls and swoons*

Khemet: *Trying not to show how cute she thinks puzzleshipping is*

Cheyenne: Again, PLEASE review! Please? =) The Fates and the Egyptian Gods/Goddesses will thank you =O

Khemet: -facepalm-

Cheyenne: *Giggles and sighs blissfully at Yami and Yugi before dragging Khemet out of the room* Let me know how you like it! Thank you!

Note: If you want a sequel, just say so in the comments and I'll write one =) I'm curious as to what Yugi's friends reactions would be when they saw Yami had returned, and their shock when they find out about the two's feelings for each other. I may end up writing this anyways, but if you want to read it faster, let me know in your review =)

**Hikari Hime – "Light Princess" or "Princess Light"**

**Aishiteru – "I love you"**

**Matsudai – "Forever"**

**Owari – "The End"**


End file.
